We're Not Normal, Not At All
by JaceNewmore
Summary: from my SYOC! Ashe and her band of merry mutations have known about Maximum Ride ever since she escaped the School. But now the School want to kill them because of her? They need to solve some problems. OC/OC pairings, slight Fax, rated T for now!
1. 001

**This is the first chapter to accompany the SYOC, 'We're Normal Apart From the Wings'.**

**Characters;  
>Ace, submitted by <span>It's Fnicking Awesomeness<span>;  
>Weston, submitted by <span>Okami-G<span>;  
>Leo, submitted by <span>FangandIggyRule<span>;  
>Zee, submitted by <span>crazyCULTure<span>;  
>Wynnie, submitted by <span>angel experiment 18<span>;  
>Quanti, submitted by <span>AngelInDisguise123<span>;  
>and Ashe, submitted by yours truly!<strong>

**Hope you enjoy the first chapter, and PLEASE, I'm still looking for one or two more characters! STILL OPEN!**

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><p><em>Pain.<em>

_It was all I could feel, all I could process._

_Salty tears fell from my eyes as I coughed the last of the water up. And then my head was pushed back underwater, giving me no chance to breathe in._

_As a boot flew to my stomach, I choked, swallowing the frigid water. Then a hand gripped the back of my head, tangling in my dirty hair, pulling me out. After heaving the water out, I drew in a shaky breath._

_"Answer me!" His voice bellowed. I could feel him standing over me, daring me to try and defy him._

_"If you're trying to get me to develop gills, you're going about it the wrong way," I answered back, my tone snarky._

_I didn't hear anything as he pushed my whole body into the large bucket. I let out a startled cry and began thrashing around, the ice cold water instantly numbing my body._

_Pain._

_I just wanted it to stop._

Lurching up straight, my body gleamed sweat. At least this time I hadn't screamed. A quick glance at the clock confirmed that it was a bit past five in the morning.

I sighed and closed my eyes. I hadn't always had these nightmares. At least, not the water-torture ones. In fact, the School only started using water torture after some bird-kids escaped from another facility. Word got around quick. They'd started using their new-and-improved torture when I was thirteen, a year before I'd escaped.

"Ashe?"

I glanced at the door and sighed again. Maybe I had screamed. "What're you doing up, boy?"

"I can't sleep." Leo simply said.

"Why not?" I asked, swinging my legs over the side of the bed.

"I'm thirteen, Ashe. I think it's about time you let me go for a night time spin."

I laughed gently. "How many times have you tried this with me?"

"Oh, loosen up. Please?"

"Fine, fine. But your mobile has to be with you at all times. And if I think there is any trouble, and I mean any trouble, I'm dragging your ass back here."

"Yes!" Leo screamed. His voice echoed through the empty house. "Ashe, you're the best!"

"I know," I replied with a wink. He laughed and bounded out of my room, his tail swishing lightly behind him.

Getting up, I pulled on some sweat pants and a bandeau.

It hadn't always been like this. No. It'd been worse. We were tested on, our DNA experimented on. But, let me introduce myself.

My name's Ashe Ryder. Yes, I'm female. Yes, I know I have a guys name. But, honestly. I love that name. And if you ever, and I mean ever, make fun of my name. Let's just say you'll be limping for a very long time.

There's this thing you should know about me. And Leo... and, well, the rest of the kids. We have wings. Like, bird wings. Heard of Maximum Ride? I figured as much. Our wings are like hers. They're not fake. They're completely real. And, well, Leo? Yeah, he's part wolf, too. Tail and all. But, you see, unlike Max, my wings have a seventeen-foot span, and I'm three percent Ruppell's Vulture. They're supposed to be really scary or something when you threaten them, but I wouldn't know. It's all the School's fault.

No, not a normal school, where kids learn and make friends. The School where scientists play around with DNA they aren't supposed to. Recombinant lifeforms, avian-humans, lupine-humans. The School where scientists push their subjects to the brink of starvation and testing. And the worst thing? Maximum Ride didn't even tell you half of what they did.

There's also something else you should know about me. My wings are fully retractable. Like, they disappear through the skin on my back, and all that remains are two remarkably straight pink scars, just noticeable. And, the School didn't know about it either. The nails on my hands can turn into razor sharp talons when I flex them.

I walked quietly to the room across mine, opening the door. Zahna (12, nickname Zee), and Wynter (16, nickname Wynnie) were fast asleep, their bodies fighting for space on the small bed.

"Wynnie," I whispered once I was at her side. She groaned and one eyelid snapped open. Her gaze focused on me and she screamed at the close proximity, jumping back and effectively knocking Zee onto the floor. I laughed giddily. "Get up. We're going for a fly."

"I hate you," she muttered. I just laughed more and circled to the other side of the room, scooping the tiny Zee into my arms and placing her back on the bed.

"Wake her up, get outside. Leo's waiting."

Wynnie just rolled her eyes. I smiled.


	2. 002

**This is the second chapter to accompany the SYOC, 'We're Normal Apart From the Wings'.**

**Characters;  
>Ace, submitted by <span>It's Fnicking Awesomeness<span>;  
>Weston, submitted by <span>Okami-G<span>;  
>Leo, submitted by <span>FangandIggyRule<span>;  
>Zee, submitted by <span>crazyCULTure<span>;  
>Wynnie, submitted by <span>angel experiment 18<span>;  
>Quanti, submitted by <span>AngelInDisguise123<span>;  
>Griffin, submitted by <span>AngelInDisguise123<span>;  
>and Ashe, submitted by yours truly!<strong>

**Hope you enjoy it, and PLEASE, I'm still looking for one or two more EVIL characters! STILL OPEN!**

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><p><em>"Come on, Ace!" I murmured, a small frown lining my face. Ace just looked at me, his cold green eyes calculating. "Hit me! Make me bleed! Do something! Just don't be mad at me."<em>

_But Ace just turned his head away and locked his jaw. "Why didn't you just answer his question? Why did you have to keep pushing him?"_

_I sighed and fell back against the crate. "All he wants is answers. Generally I don't have answers. I have questions of my own."_

_Ace leaped forward, falling onto his knees. He gripped the bars of my cage and stared at me the way I hated. "But you had this answer. You knew this answer. Why didn't you help yourself?"_

_"Maybe I didn't want to give up!" I yelled back at him. But I was lying, and Ace knew it too. It wasn't that I didn't want to give up. It wasn't that I didn't remember. It was that it hurt too much for me to think about. "I don't want to remember. I don't want to think about it."_

_Jade green eyes just stared at me. I stared back. "I hate this. I hate emotions. I hate feeling them and I want them to stop." "I know." I whispered._

_"It's all you. You make me... feel everything! I don't remember what it's like not to feel emotions! And they're all directed towards you!" Ace yelled. He got up and kicked my cage, and I fell back into the bars._

_The door to the crate flew open, and I crawled out of it. Ace watched as I stood up, and then rushed at me. I expected a left hook, even a kick to the stomach. Heck, I was waiting for it to happen. But it didn't._

_Ace wrapped his strong arms around my soaking wet clothes and pulled me tightly against him. His lips landed on my forehead and I closed my eyes and let the tears pour from them. It wasn't until I pulled away, and looked at Ace, that I realised he was teary as well._

_"Ashe," he whispered. "I miss him so much. I fucking miss him."_

_I laughed a little and raised my hand to touch his cheek. "So do I."_

I snapped from my memory at the sound of a twig breaking. My head moved to the left and I could just make out the shape of Quanti (9, nickname Q). I smiled gently.

"Hey, what're you doing up?" I asked him.

"Heard you and Leo making a fuss. Wynnie and Zee woke me up. They're making breakfast." Q said slowly. He sat in front of me and stared up at me, just waiting.

Narrowing my eyes, I raised an eyebrow. "What do you want?"

Q let a smile spread across his face. "How do you know I want something? I could just be sitting out here waiting for you to show me how you do Tai Chi. It seems cool. Or, I could be plotting against you and the other girls and waiting for Leo to get back to complete my master plan. Or I could just be shitting you to see your reaction."

"Q!" Scolding him lightly, I crossed my arms in front of my chest. "Language." He just smirked at me. I rolled my eyes. "And besides. Leo loves me too much to plot against me."

"You mean he loves_ Zee_too much to plot against her, you mean." Q sniggered. He knew a lot, and that was only because he was extremely observant.

"Shh!" I whispered, looking around like there were people listening to us. "Could you have said that any louder?"

Q smirked at me again. And then proceeded to cackle loudly like the evil little bird-boy he was. "Your face."

My eyes became narrowed slits and I started to move my body again like Led had taught me. Led was a close friend of mine at school who had taught me Tai Chi Chuan when I threatened to sock a guy in the face. Because, y'know, we did go to school. Just not _the School_.

"What do you call a bee that's having a bad hair day?" Q asked, throwing his hands behind his head and leaning back against a tree. I gave him a look and he smiled innocently. "A frisbee!" He started to laugh at his own joke, and then yelped in surprise. "Ashe!"

"What?" I asked, my eyes wide. I knew exactly what I'd done, but I kept the smile off my face. "I slipped."

Q picked the twig, the one I'd kicked at him, from his hair before throwing it back at me. "You think you're so funny, don't you?"

"Oh, I'm just hilarious." I replied with a wink. He rolled his eyes and headed inside.

I continued my morning routine, but I knew someone else was watching me. Glancing once at the house, I backed into the shadows and started looking for him. Who? Ace. I knew he was watching me, I could feel it the moment Q had walked away.

There was a slight shift in the air around me and I spun around, white hair whipping against my face.

And in front of me stood a six foot four figure, one that I knew extremely well. I launched at him and wrapped my arms around his neck, and he spun me around in a circle.

"Hey beautiful," he whispered. He set me back on the ground and looked around. "I don't have long, I'm supposed to meet some bitch back in California. But, I know they're going to make us come after you."

"Ace," I sighed. "I don't care. We're at school, it's finally normal for once."

"You don't think they'd notice the amount of money disappearing from their accounts?" Ace replied cockily. "They disposed of some guy who they thought was doing it."

"But... he was innocent, then!"

"You really think they care?" He laughed. His jade-green eyes were cold, and I braced myself for what he was really here for. "You've got some serious balls to take these kids to school. These people, the white-coats, to them you and your kids are just experiments who need to be terminated. Just because you're older and probably a lot better looking then Maximum Ride doesn't mean you're smarter then her. She knows how to stay below radar, and taking these kids to school is not below radar. You know that."

I took a deep breath and turned away from Ace while I tried to stop the emotions running through my veins. "These kids need an education. They need to know that the world isn't just white-coats trying to destroy them."

Ace laughed at me. "You're not their mother, Ashe."

"I might as well be!" I yelled at him. "I clean them up after they hurt themselves, and I pick them up when they fall down! They don't have a mother, but I'm the closest they have!"

"And what happens when you fall down? What happens when your the hurt one?" Ace snarled.

"Then _you_better damn well be there!" I replied, and watched as Ace's eyes warmed. He locked his jaw and reached forward to pull me against his body. Even though he didn't like the emotions I provoked in him, he didn't try to act against them.

"Fuck, Ashe. I miss you. Why can't you just work for them? It's so much easier." I looked up at Ace and raised an eyebrow. But before I had the chance to answer, Ace had leaned down to gently kiss me. "I'm off. See you when I see you."

* * *

><p>Ace stared at the woman in front of him. He decided she could've been pretty had she not looked so serious. He glanced down at his phone and sighed. It was too late for him to go out flying, and he'd been sitting in here for at least an hour. And the image of Ashe couldn't leave his mind.<p>

"My name is Miranda," she said, giving him a subtle look from underneath the glasses perched on her nose. "You'll be answering to me from now on. And as your superior, I'd like to get some things sorted out."

"Let me guess. I can't stare at your ass all day?" Ace asked, frowning slightly. He figured he might as well have some fun with her.

Miranda's face turned a bright pink and she cleared her throat. "I will not tolerate any of that. Now. I understand you and this... Ashe Freeman have a history."

Ace stayed silent at the mention of Ashe's name.

"There will be no feelings for it. When you are told to find it, you will. When you are told to fight it, you will. When you are told to bring it in, you will. And when you are told to kill it, you will not hesitate. Do I-" Miranda didn't get a chance to finish the sentence.

"Her." Ace growled. "She's not an it."

Miranda stared at Ace with disdain. "So it's true. You do have feelings for it."

"You could say that." Ace sighed. "And you could also say that with a click of my fingers, I could have you dead and in a dumpster."

"Are you threatening me?" Miranda laughed.

Ace just smiled at her. "If you touch a hair on Ashe's head, no."

"I'm superior to you!" Miranda screamed at him.

"And I'm far more capable of doing things by myself, but that doesn't stop me from being here!" Ace yelled back, kicking his chair back at leaning towards her over the table. His voice was loud and deadly. He flicked the swoop of hair from his eye and stared at Miranda with his jade green eyes. "Ashe is mine. You touch her at all; you lose your best mutant killer and I'll burn this place to the ground without a second thought. Just because you're superior to me doesn't mean I do what you want. Do I make myself understood?"

Miranda breathed in deeply and locked her jaw. She didn't have control over him, fine. She had thousands of other... mutants waiting for her. "Yes."

Ace reached forward and cupped Miranda's jaw, dragging her out of the chair and towards him. Their faces were inches apart, and Miranda didn't have the strength to pull away from him. Their eyes were locked, and Ace reached forward with his other hand to rip open Miranda's blouse. She gasped loudly and raised her arm to hit Ace, but he easily caught her smirked and let her go before walking to the door.

"Oh, and nice bra." Ace said as he left the room. He threw a wink over his shoulder at a fuming Miranda, who was already buttoning her top to cover the black lace piece.


	3. 003

**This is the third chapter to accompany the SYOC, 'We're Normal Apart From the Wings'.**

**Characters;  
>Ace, submitted by <span>It's Fnicking Awesomeness<span>;  
>Weston, submitted by <span>Okami-G<span>;  
>Leo, submitted by <span>FangandIggyRule<span>;  
>Zee, submitted by <span>crazyCULTure<span>;  
>Wynnie, submitted by <span>angel experiment 18<span>;  
>Quanti, submitted by <span>AngelInDisguise123<span>;  
>Griffin, submitted by <span>AngelInDisguise123<span>;  
>Maria, submitted by <span>SomethingAboutDarkAngels<span>;  
>and Ashe, submitted by yours truly!<strong>

**Hope you enjoy it, and PLEASE, I'm now looking for SCHOOL people! As in, people that go to Ashe's school! STILL OPEN!**

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><p><em>"Go faster!" Ace yelled, pushing me in front of him gently. I faked a stumble and shot him a look. "I haven't got all day!" <em>

_The Eraser behind me laughed. I turned my head to glare at him, but kept my mouth shut because Ace had started talking again. "You know what they do to dead mutations? I do, and you don't. But you'll figure it out shortly."_

_Again, the Eraser laughed. But then a hand grabbed my arm and pulled me to a stop. Ace spun me around so I was facing the Eraser, and that was when I realised the room we were in wasn't any normal room. It was high enough that I could fly openly, and wide enough to fit a couple thousand people. A frown lined my face and I spun to see Ace standing behind a glass screen with a couple of white-coats._

_"Oh, I wasn't talking to her," Ace said, staring at the Eraser with a sorrowful look. "I was talking to you."_

_There was a loud noise, almost like a siren, and I cringed openly. The Eraser started to morph after a growl and spun slowly to look at me._

_"He thinks you can beat me," the Eraser laughed. I smirked playfully and raised an eyebrow quickly._

_"He doesn't think I can." I said, my voice husky from the night before. Without a word of warning, my fourteen foot wings snapped out of the slits in my white shirt. "He knows I can."_

_This was a daily thing. I was used to it. Fighting the erasers, the white-coats watching. Normally Ace left half-way through. He was their best, the one who trained the erasers. Even though he was only fifteen, he was probably more experienced then any of them, and had a whole lot more attitude as well._

_The Eraser ran for me, and I met him with a strong rouse-house that slammed into his face. As he stumbled back, I launched at him with a series of kicks and punches, each hitting their target with surprising precision, each a lot faster then possible for a human._

_A couple of minutes later, I was standing over the Eraser, my breathing only slightly quicker._

_"Again!" A voice over the speaker said. Turning, I found Ace was staring at me with a look on his face only I knew. They... they were going to make me fight again. Against something worse than an eraser._

_The glass door slid open and out stepped a young boy. His round eyes stared up at me, and I gasped at the reddish-brown plumage of feathers across his chest. He had wings. He couldn't have been more than eight years old and even though he looked nothing like Ace, the young boy reminded me of him._

_I closed my gaping mouth and tried shut my emotions down, but it wasn't working. I couldn't fight this boy. Not now. Not after everything._

_The young boy advanced, and hit after hit he came at me. Each I dodged with alarming accuracy. I could feel Ace's stare in the back of my head. He knew I could do this all day. He knew I wasn't going to hurt a hair on this kid._

_"Stop this!" He yelled. I could hear him through the glass. "She isn't going to hurt him. Can't you see that? She'll keep us here all night and honestly, I want my sleep!"_

_And then a pain I'd never felt before burst through my head. My ear-piercing scream rattled the glass and even the young boy covered his ears. I'd already collapsed into a fetal position, and my hands were gripping my hair so tight I was surprised none of it ripped out._

_I felt arms around my body, and then the blackness swallowed me._

* * *

><p>Maria lowered her bow and arrow as a figure approached the school. Somehow, she knew it was Ace before she even saw his face. "Where've you been?" She called, smiling tentatively as his head snapped towards her. "You're never out this late."<p>

Ace raised an eyebrow as he jumped over the fence that surrounded the school. He landed with a dull thud and stood, pulling his wings in tightly to his back. "How would you know?"

A bright crimson red flooded Maria's face. "I always have this shift. You never arrive while I'm on watch-out."

"Either that or you're just crushing on me," Ace said as his lips formed a lopsided smile. "We both know the real reason though."

A perfectly shaped eyebrow raised on Maria's head, and if it hadn't been for the dark of the night, Ace would have seen her blush again. "Yeah? What's that?"

Ace took a step towards Maria and lifted a strand of her brown hair. "Miranda."

Breathing in slowly, Maria gained some self control and stepped away, raising her bow and arrow to aim at the target she had set up minutes before "What about her?"

"Oh, don't bullshit with me, Maria." Ace snarled. He grabbed the weapon from her grasp and looked it over.

"Be careful with that." Maria hissed at him. She jumped and unsuccessfully tried to get it back.

Ace laughed at her and loaded the bow. "How do you work these things? They seem so... faulty." As Maria jumped at him again, Ace skidded out of the way, moving ever so closer to the target.

"Stop, Ace!" Maria whined, frowning. She jumped one more time, and then yelped in surprise. A strong hand had caught her throat mid-leap. It's force nailed her against the tree, Ace's green eyes staring down at her expression in amusement.

"You don't think I notice the way you look at me?" Ace whispered. His voice was dripping in unshed laugher. "The way you angle your body so I'm always in your line of view? Come on, Maria. It's so obvious. She's brainwashed you into spying on me."

"Let me go," Maria muttered, looking uncomfortable under his gaze. "I need to get back on watch."

"And watch what, exactly?" Ace laughed. His fist slammed into the tree and he let Maria fall to her feet. "Watch what I do? Who I talk to?" Maria snarled at him. Ace smiled sweetly. "Don't bother coming after me. And you can tell that Miranda bitch to be a little less... obvious next time."

Maria frowned at Ace as he dropped a small piece of wire to the ground. As he walked towards the complex, she reached for the bug... and then realised it wasn't around her ear. Again, a frown befell Maria's face. She walked to the wire and picked it off the ground, marveling the way she didn't even know he'd taken it from her. Maria turned back to the target. What met her eyes amazed her, and she didn't even bother to close her gaping mouth. Ace had managed to plunge the arrow straight into the centre of the target when his fist had landed on the tree.

"Damn," she muttered. She spun around, expecting to see his retreating figure, and found herself alone in the dark. "He's good."

* * *

><p>I stared into my closet of clothes. Wynnie laughed at me, and Zee smirked. I glared at them and sighed. "Out. Now."<p>

Five minutes later, I'd shifted the messy pile back into the closet and chosen my outfit. I stretched my wings one last time before pulling them all the way through my back, and then put on some clothes. Gray skinny jeans, a worn and ripped American tank top and buckled skull boots. I threw the black canvas backpack over my shoulder and waltzed downstairs.

Our school was about a half hour away. I always took someone on my black Kawasaki Ninja with me, while Wynter had an old beat up car to pool the other kids to school. Flying just wasn't an option.

"Who's on the bike with me today?" I called.

Before anyone else could answer, Q's voice rang out clearly. "Me! Me! Me! Meeeeeee!"

A deep rumbling laugh erupted from the kitchen and I smiled slowly before walking in. Griffin nodded in my direction and then smiled happily. "Hey Ashe."

"What're you so happy about?" I laughed, sending him a weird look.

"I just have a good feeling about today."

"Ohhhkay...?" I sent him another weird look but let a smile cover my face.

But he was wrong. He was so, so wrong.


	4. 004

**I apologise! Let me get that out of the way. I should have updated sooner, really, all I had left to do on the chapter was editing. But I've been busy. I won't spare you the details of my life - just know that from now on, I'll update whenever I can. I'M NEVER GIVING UP ON THIS.  
>OKAY! ON A VERY HAPPIER NOTE, THIS IS WHERE THINGS START GETTING INTERESTING. I'm sorry for the shortness. Next chapter will have action - both kinds you can think of. (;<strong>

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><p><em>It was raining heavily, and every crack of thunder made me jump uneasily. I glanced around the small room, at the raising water around my thighs. They couldn't leave me in here. They couldn't let me drown.<em>

_I'd already started shivering, and not just because the water was freezing. But because I was so afraid of it. How was Ace letting them do this to me? How was he just sitting back and doing nothing?_

_And the more I thought, the faster the water raised. It was at my stomach now, the material of the hospital dress clinging to my body._

"_Get me out of here!" I screamed. "Someone! Please!" _

_The tears streamed down my face, and I hiccuped back a shriek as another loud bang of thunder shattered the air. I pushed my self further into the corner, staring at the trap door above me, the one that had sealed me in this room._

_A rack of shivers went down my spine, and my eyes closed. I had to calm myself. My breathing was ragged, and I was close to hyperventilating. Somewhere, they were watching this, and they were laughing at me. I wouldn't give them the pleasure of seeing me lose myself. Not like this._

_And then there was a hand on my arm. I was being pulled from the ice water up into the room above the dungeon they had created. There was a towel thrown hastily around my shivering shoulders, a hand smoothing the hair back off my sweaty face. I could feel the arms around my body, and the words being whispered in my ear._

"_I've got you, beautiful. I won't let them hurt you ever again."_

_It was Ace._

I shut the memory from my mind and turned my face away from the window. The class I was in was studying silently. No one had noticed my glazed eyes, and no one had been talking to me. That in itself was a relief.

Glancing down at the book in front of me, I tried to read the words. But they wouldn't form in my mind, and I kept glancing back at the window. A small frown lined my face.

It had started raining.

The bell sounded five minutes later, but I was in no rush. I took my time packing my things up, staying seated after the teacher had left. And even then, I didn't bother to stand. I wasn't in the right state of mind to do anything, actually.

"Ashe?"

I ripped my gaze from the window and stared at Griffin who stood there, looking dumbfounded.

"What are you doing?" He asked slowly, glancing back over his shoulder before walking towards me.

I shrugged, biting my lip. He yawned softly, and then took a seat next to me. "Do you ever get nightmares?"

"Sometimes." He replied. "But I'm a heavy sleeper."

Nodding, I folded my arms across my chest. "How do you deal with it?"

"The pain? I exercise. Like you do, with your Tai Chi stuff." Griffin looked at me and sighed. "But thats different. You only do Tai Chi when your frustrated or mad."

The silence that followed was almost deafening. A clap of thunder echoed through the room, and I jumped slightly.

"It's okay, Ashe." He whispered. "They're not here, and you're not there."

But I already knew that. So why was I so scared? Why was the skin on my arms crawling, and the hairs on my neck standing on end?

"Somethings wrong." I told him slowly. I could feel it in the blood running through my veins, I could smell it in the air. Griffin looked at me, tipping his head to the side. And then it clicked.

Without a word, I'd shot out of my chair, racing down the deserted hallways. Griffin was on my heel, keeping up with my pace. It wasn't the rain that made me uncomfortable, even though it did dampen my mood. The only time when rain made me uncomfortable was when there were Erasers around. And there was trouble when Erases were around.

The long white of my hair slapped across my face as I came to a sudden standstill at the stairs, throwing my arm out to stop Griffin.

Right there, on the bottom step of the stairs, were three men in black clothing. They all looked the same in appearance - like a supermodel. And they were staring straight at us.

There was dead silence for a moment, the only noise being the rain pelting against the window. And then we were running in the opposite direction, our minds on the same wavelength. We had to go up, and there was only one other staircase in the building.

We pushed our legs harder, we ran faster than we had in a long time. Because we had to survive, we had to escape. Other wise we'd belong to the School again. And that was simply out of the question.

Ace stared blankly at the screen. He could feel Ashe's discomfort, he could feel that something wasn't right. But he already knew why. Every inch of his body wanted to scream at her, every inch of his body wanted to launch across the table and strangle her to death. But he couldn't. Not yet.

His eyes flickered across to Miranda's. There was silence. No change in his facial expression. But she was gloating. She was actually _gloating._

"What about it?" Ace asked calmly. She titled her head, and then cracked a smile.

"They were six of our best erasers. I'm expecting the Ashe's flock to be here by tomorrow." And she was still gloating.

But this time it was Ace's turn to smile. In fact, he laughed. His green eyes were so unaffected, so _confident, _the smile on Miranda's face disappeared. "You don't know what you've just done."

"Then explain it to me," she said, another smile hitting her face. But this one wasn't a gloating smile. She wasn't confident anymore.

"You sent _twelve _of _your best _to bring in _the best _mutant we have out there." Ace smiled, shook his head. "That isn't smart. That's suicidal. She could rip all their throats out with her teeth in under a minute.."

Miranda stared at Ace, and Ace stared right back. "You're bluffing," she laughed.

"Try me. See what happens. But don't get pissed when _twelve _of your best get slaughtered."

And then Ace watched as a small shudder cascaded down her spine. He knew his words had affected her. He stood quickly, throwing the authorization papers back across to Miranda.

"Ace!" She yelled.

But he didn't even stop. The door slammed behind him, and he made quick work of getting outside. He was beyond pissed. And the only way he would feel any better was ripping apart the Erasers that even _tried _to touch Ashe.


	5. 005

**...You guys can come after me later with pick axes if you want. Muchos apologies. Needless to say that I haven't updated ANY of my FanFiction work for more than a couple of months, BUT whatever my excuses are, aren't worth it. So I got this quickly done for you guys, and it may be the shortest update in history, BUT it's an update never-the-less.**

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><p>"<em>I'm getting you out of here," Ace whispered. I stared at him blankly, rubbing the bruise on my arm. "The last thing I need is for you to turn out like Max."<em>

_We both cringed at the thought, and his arms tightened around me._

"_Ace, I don't want to leave you," I told him truthfully. "I don't think I could do it by myself."_

_Ace looked at me threw half lidded eyes, and then pressed his lips against mine. I was surprised - this was my first kiss. His arms tightened around me again, his thumb rubbing the space just under my right wing. It was clumsy, but it was beautiful. It was the purest thing to come out of the hell hole._

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><p>Griffin and I found ourselves on the roof, severely outnumbered by the Erasers.<p>

"We don't have to hurt you," one growled. "So don't give us reason to."

I laughed out loud. "Are you serious? You'd never be able to touch us!"

They launched at us - I didn't know how many, because I stopped counting at five. Fists and kicks were dodged and blocked, some meeting their targets.

Launching a round-house at one, I didn't even hesitate before following through with another. A few seconds later, a scissor kick that pushed two backwards. A left hook, a right uppercut.

And then a hand across my face stopped everything. I fell to the ground, blood pouring from the three claw marks on my cheek.

There was an inhumane growl - but it didn't come from me.

When I looked up, Ace was snapping kicks left right and centre, almost too fast for my eyes to follow. Within the next couple of seconds, Griffin and Ace were standing over the bodies of six unconscious Erasers.

"_God _that felt good," Ace muttered, a smirk lining his face. He shot a look over at Griffin. "You're getting better." And then he looked at me. "And you're getting slower."

I narrowed my eyes at him and huffed, folding my arms. "I was surprised," I muttered indignantly. Ace raised an eyebrow. "They're getting better, I was surprised!"

Ace chuckled and muttered something under his breath, while Griffin snorted.

"Right, well, I'm going to my much deserved break," Griffin stated calmly. He nodded at Ace and moved back down into the stairwell. "See you later, Ashe."

"Bye," I replied softly. I clambered to my feet and gently felt my face. "Damn, that's going to scar."

"Scars are hot?" Ace suggested slowly.

I laughed at him and fell back to the ground that was covered in Eraser blood and body parts. I groaned distastefully. "How are we going to clean this up?"

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><p>About an hour later, I was sitting outside the principles office.<p>

Ace had called in back-up to clean the mess with specific orders to leave the 'mutants' alone, and teachers had become extremely worried when they saw my face.

"Alright, Ashe, you can come in now."

I stood up gracefully and entered the office, surprised to see that the first-aid nurse was also in there. She sat me down on one of the seats and began to clean the wound.

"As a teacher and a parent, when someone that flies under the radar, such as you, ends up with... whiskers of blood on their face – well, you can see why I called you in here," the principle said. A name badge sat in the middle of his desk, _George Simons_ surrounded in yellow gold. "Never once have you stepped foot into this office, and neither have your siblings. Your grades are just above average. And yet here you are with three deep cuts in your cheek."

I held back a laugh as I met the principles eyes. "George, can I call you George? No? Well, as I've tried telling the other teachers... it was just a simple mishap with Griffin. We were playing around and the were some nails sticking out were they shouldn't have been and wham. That was all."

Simons tilted his head and placed his hands over his bulging stomach. "So there's no issues or anything at home?"

"Nope," I replied, "and even if there was, I'd have it under control."

Simons nodded simply and then looked at the nurse as she finished with the disinfectant. "You can go now."

The nurse smiled at me and said a few parting words, and then I was standing on my feet and stretching.

"Oh, and Ashe? If you have _any _troubles here, just bring them to me," Simons said slowly as he put some glasses back on his nose.

I rolled my eyes and turned around, prepared to leave the office when something caught my eye.

It was a photo of Simons and someone who could pass for his daughter. She could have been really attractive if it wasn't for the business-like demeanour, with the chin length blond hair and pale skin. In the photo frame was a plaque, one similar to the one on Simon's desk. It read a simple, _Standing with the one and only Miranda Irving. _

Taking one last glance back at Simons, I frowned.

Something wasn't right here.


End file.
